DVD Verdict reviews: PURPLE RAIN: 20TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION and more!

Today, DVD Verdict posted reviews of THE DOORS LIVE IN EUROPE: 1968,
HIGHWAYMEN, LA FEMME MUSKETEER, THE LION IN WINTER (2004), LITTLE
MURDERS, THE LOST BOYS: SPECIAL EDITION, THE MANGLER, MEAN STREETS:
SPECIAL EDITION, MONSIEUR IBRAHIM, PURPLE RAIN: 20TH ANNIVERSARY
EDITION, and THE ROBOCOP TRILOGY:


THE DOORS LIVE IN EUROPE: 1968 (reviewed by George Hatch, overall
score 89/100):
"He was indeed a handsome man but, like Elvis, you had to see him in
full body shots to capture his charismatic stage presence. You'll get
some of that in 'Back Door Man' and 'Spanish Caravan.' The latter starts
of with one of Morrison's long, poetically surreal introductions. These
enigmatic musings seem to be flowing spontaneously from his subconscious
and can literally hypnotize an audience. Believe me: I've been there!"

FULL REVIEW: http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/doorsliveineurope1968.php

HIGHWAYMEN (reviewed by David Johnson, overall score 79/100):
"With a runtime that's a shade under most TV movies-of-the-week,
Highwaymen flies by certainly, but like a bright red Ferrari with a
hideous dent in the quarter-panel, you'll only notice it for its
imperfection."

FULL REVIEW: http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/highwaymen.php

LA FEMME MUSKETEER (reviewed by Amanda DeWees, overall score 82/100):
"Its tone is humorous, broadly anachronistic, and unabashedly cheesy;
bad wigs abound, and the accents are all over the map, but the
enterprise is saved by some enjoyable performances and a lighthearted
take on the aging Musketeers."

FULL REVIEW: http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/lafemmemusketeer.php

THE LION IN WINTER (2004) (reviewed by Amanda DeWees, overall
score 91/100):
"The first question many people will bring to this film is 'why?' That
is, why remake an acknowledged screen classic? The lure of James
Goldman's play may be one answer. With such rich source material, one
can understand why today's actors would itch to have a chance to
recreate these roles."

FULL REVIEW: http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/lioninwinter2004.php

LITTLE MURDERS (reviewed by George Hatch, overall score 90/100):
"His foreboding observations of the urban wasteland in Little Murders
may be 30 years old, but they are just as pertinent today -- and as
current as this morning's headlines."

FULL REVIEW: http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/littlemurders.php

THE LOST BOYS: SPECIAL EDITION (reviewed by David Johnson, overall
score 92/100):
"Go grab this excellent set. Tons of extras and a solid technical
treatment of a movie about teenage vampires getting melted, exploded and
impaled makes The Lost Boys: Special Edition a requirement for your
collection."

FULL REVIEW: http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/lostboysse.php

THE MANGLER (reviewed by David Johnson, overall score 77/100):
"Essentially a bloated episode of Tales From the Crypt, The Mangler
delivers the gibs, but not the goods."

FULL REVIEW: http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/mangler.php

MEAN STREETS: SPECIAL EDITION (reviewed by Dan Mancini, overall
score 90/100):
"Mean Streets is about a man's ejection from the insular community in
which he was bred and lives (Scorsese refers to it as a 'tribe' in this
disc's commentary) for violating its ornate rituals, codes of honor, and
rigid social hierarchy. As such, the picture is the prototype for nearly
all of Martin Scorsese's best films. Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and
Casino all cover similar territory from various angles."

FULL REVIEW: http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/meanstreetsse.php

MONSIEUR IBRAHIM (reviewed by Joel Pearce, overall score 81/100):
"Monsieur Ibrahim sits in an odd place between advancing a lot of coming-of-
age movie cliches and trying to do something completely original. The
result is a bit messy and less satisfying than it should be, but it also
has a lot going for it."

FULL REVIEW: http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/monsieuribrahim.php

PURPLE RAIN: 20TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION (reviewed by David Ryan, overall
score 90/100):
"On the one hand, it's a well-filmed bunch of amateurs doing their best
to act, but not doing that great a job of it, in a rock and roll
musical. On the other hand, it's one of the defining moments in rock
history. How do you review something that's objectively mediocre, but
subjectively fantastic?"

FULL REVIEW: http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/purplerain.php

THE ROBOCOP TRILOGY (reviewed by Patrick Bromley, overall score 88/100):
"It's like the wife-to-be (now actually just the wife) told me when I
was stressing about articulating my thoughts correctly in this review:
'What can you say? You like the Robo. You like the Cop. You like the
Robocop.'"

FULL REVIEW: http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/robocoptrilogy.php

Mike Jackson
Editor & Webmaster, DVD Verdict
www.dvdverdict.com